448 replies to this topic

[dmathias]

Wait a minute - you mean the sky isn't falling?

[Johnny D]

Not sure you guys are on the same page in FL.

We all learned a few things this last weekend...

1) FPR's are now a must have, if you want to run up front. John and Cliff both had them in their 1.6's

2) 37mm may be a touch too small, Alex and Sellin were both in well developed 99 cars. 39mm with 2420 lb might be the answer.

3) Plate has a greater effect than weight on all cars...almost everyone was a little overweight (no pun intended).

4) We need some top level drivers to pilot a 94-97 car to gather real world data...I'm certainly NOT one (yet).

5) All in all though, the NASA rule set seems closer to parity than the current SCCA set.

6) It would be great if BOTH organizations could get back to similiar (same) rule set...plate and weight swapping is cumbersome for both driver and tech.

Jim Blaisdell
NASA FL Spec Miata Series Director
5X Racing Team Driver
Rossini Racing Products Rep.
nasaflsm@gmail.com

J~

[Kyle Burkhardt]

Not sure you guys are on the same page in FL.



J~

I bet we see a small adjustment to the RP after the NASA Mid O event next month.

[dmathias]

Bet you don't.

[Johnny D]

What happened in SoCal, Road Atlanta, and Texas?

J~

[Blake Clements]

What happened in SoCal, Road Atlanta, and Texas?

J~

Report from Texas

97 1.8 (2 wins) and 1.6 (1 win) won the races. First 99 was about a three tenths to a half second back per fastest laps.

The best data point is one driver with immense track knowledge and a top prep 1.6 and 99. He ran the 1.6 on Saturday and 99 on Sunday. He was 9 tenths slower in the 99.

http://www.mylaps.co...t.jsp?id=632206

Clements 97, Udell 1.6, Gabriel 99, Palmer 1.6, Verges 1.6 Sat/99 Sunday

Blake

[dstevens]

What happened in SoCal,

Not that many 99s out here. Sammy brought his 1.8NA.

http://www.mylaps.co...7380&perclass=1

http://www.mylaps.co...7383&perclass=1

[Johnny D]

Not that many 99s out here. Sammy brought his 1.8NA.

http://www.mylaps.co...7380&perclass=1

http://www.mylaps.co...7383&perclass=1

Can't bring a knife to a gun fight?
J~

[William Keeling]

Report from Texas

97 1.8 (2 wins) and 1.6 (1 win) won the races. First 99 was about a three tenths to a half second back per fastest laps.

The best data point is one driver with immense track knowledge and a top prep 1.6 and 99. He ran the 1.6 on Saturday and 99 on Sunday. He was 9 tenths slower in the 99.

http://www.mylaps.co...t.jsp?id=632206

Clements 97, Udell 1.6, Gabriel 99, Palmer 1.6, Verges 1.6 Sat/99 Sunday

Blake

My guess is if you had driven your 99 you would have finished in the same spots -- just saying

[Steve D]

What happened in SoCal, Road Atlanta, and Texas?

J~

Road Atlanta recap is here: Pot O Gold thread.

Unfortunately, we had another small field. I tried to get some skinny dude to drive my 99 but he said he had to be at VIR for some high maintenance "customers".

[Johnny D]

Road Atlanta recap is here: Pot O Gold thread.

Unfortunately, we had another small field. I tried to get some skinny dude to drive my 99 but he said he had to be at VIR for some high maintenance "customers".

Thanks Steve.
So who's driving what in the recap?
J~

[Steve D]

Thanks Steve.
So who's driving what in the recap?
J~

I can't seem to copy and paste the driver/car list from the other thread. Maybe I need iPad lessons.

Anyway, that's why I posted the link here. I wasn't trying to make it difficult.

[Johnny D]

The link is fine, but I don't know the drivers.
Just asking for the year of car of the top 3.
Remember 99 subject.
J~

[Steve D]

The link is fine, but I don't know the drivers.
Just asking for the year of car of the top 3.
Remember 99 subject.
J~

Ohhh. The car years are noted for the entire field to the right of the fast lap for each driver.

Sorry for my confusion about your question.

[Johnny D]

Thanks, so we have a 99 winner. Everybody Happy?
J~

[Rob Burgoon]

Not that many 99s out here. Sammy brought his 1.8NA.

http://www.mylaps.co...7380&perclass=1

http://www.mylaps.co...7383&perclass=1

A bunch of our fast 99 guys just retired (I don't think the rule changes had anything to do with it), and there weren't many at Auto Club speedway. I don't think it would have mattered much though. At Auto Club bump drafting with a partner while you check your email on the long oval has the potential to completely scramble the order every lap, so lap times, results, or anything but drag racing from slow corners at that track shouldn't tell us much unless things are WAY off.

Since our fast guys stayed home (having been frozen to death the previous weekend with SCCA), most of us were goofing around on older tires.

Fun race though!

[tLinder]

My guess is if you had driven your 99 you would have finished in the same spots -- just saying

Blake did the best he could to give us a slight chance on Sat by starting at the back (or near the back) of a 25 car field for Race 1 . (He was in 6th by lap 6 & finished 5th, 7 sec behind P1).

And you're probably right the results would be the same with Clements in his 99. Have to consider Verges didn't race his 99 by choice on Sun. (His 1.6 was taken out during Race 2 on Sat). Curious to what prep' level he had done on his 99 for the 2011 rules.

[dstevens]

I've raced the roval at Fontana and I suppose it's better than nothing. I prefer Big Willow or even Streets. Haven't been to Buttonwillow yet.

[Rob Burgoon]

I've raced the roval at Fontana and I suppose it's better than nothing. I prefer Big Willow or even Streets. Haven't been to Buttonwillow yet.

Sucks for driving, fun for racing, teamwork, and some racecraft. Kind of like Talladega if you can stay in the lead pack.

Buttonwillow is great for driving, but not as good for racing. Willow Springs big track is just awesome.

[5X Racing]

Not sure you guys are on the same page in FL.



J~

No, it seems not. I would be fine with a small adjustment to the 99 to make it a "little" faster, but I was in the thick of it with Alex and saw two pretty damn even cars, he was even ahead of me and I wasn't catching up during saturdays race. I can see a small adjustment being ok for the guys without top prepped 99's, but they are not going to be at the NASA Nats, so I imagine it will look pretty even at the nats this year if the rules stay the same, as all cars present will be top prepped. It might be different at various tracks, but count Homestead as one of those that the cars are even at (in my opinion at least). I know Alex was a little dissatisfied with the rules, as he thought a "junkyard" 1.6 could come out and walk away from the field. I highly disagree, I think the two 1.6's that beat him were developed well and set-up very well. There were other 1.6's out there that were far from junkyard, with newer drivers, and they certainly did not walk away from the field. Driver skill, set-up, tires, and tuning have a lot to do with being successful in a NASA rule set from my point of view, as it does with the SCCA, so the higher skilled drivers are going to do the best, as they should.

On a side note, Alex was scheduled to run his 99 in SCCA trim in the PT class in the other race group for our test, but used Cliff's car because he parked his car on Saturday for some reason. If Alex was running in SCCA trim (I didn't get a chance to talk to them before they left, and they weren't at impound), Alex was setting smoking fast laps, fastest SM laps of the weekend. That tells me the SCCA rule set would show a dominant 99 car at Homestead, and Alex wasn't even in his own car. So, on it goes.